Cycling is the new golf: Lycra and Lattes replace the boardroom

We have all seen them. Groups of weekend warriors, swathed in brightly colored (often overstuffed) lycra, sipping lattes in a cafe filled with what looks like a slightly overweight version of a professional Peloton cyclist. The familiar “click-clack” of tacos on polished concrete is all too familiar in most downtown cafes on the weekends. Mixed in with the usual brunch talk, you’ll hear serious discussions on topics like average watts, the aerodynamic benefits of shoe covers, and the best leg waxing techniques.

While MAMILs (middle-aged men in lycra) have been widely mocked and dismissed as hard-working people suffering from some sort of identity crisis, many are now realizing the real business benefits of weekend group travel. week.

For the last three decades, golf has reigned as the business networking activity for the discerning executive. Many high-profile corporate deals have been sealed on the fairways of golf courses around the world, or over an after-game drink at the country club. These days, cycling has become firmly entrenched as the modern business person’s preferred networking event.

Golf and cycling share many similarities, and it’s easy to see why an increasing number of corporate players hit the road every weekend. The fashion choices are notoriously iffy, with plaid pants or skintight pink Lycra on display. The obsession with having and wearing the best and most expensive equipment is also prevalent in both sports. It’s not uncommon to see a $20,000 bike on a suburban Melbourne group ride. Carbon wheels, power meters or sticks with carbon rods. It’s all the same really.

However, it is the social aspects of shared physical activity that hold the key to cycling’s popularity with our business leaders. Instead of the serious, formal and structured interactions that are prevalent in our boardrooms, cycling offers a relaxed and fluid environment coupled with a very real sense of shared achievement and camaraderie. Group travel also allows participants to assess their comrades on a raw, primal level without the masks and personas of normal business meetings. Not only physical fitness, but also the will to work for a team goal, self-sacrifice, aggressiveness and resilience are on display and impossible to fake when driving into a strong headwind with 40km still to go. . Sometimes it is the communal suffering of a rough journey that brings the participants together. Shared water bottle, warm sachet of “fruit” flavored energy gel passed to colleague who was weakening.

The post-trip ritual of cake and coffee (or a full greasy fry) is where the magic really happens. Sharing stories of real (or slightly exaggerated) ride highlights, power outputs, average speeds, and Euro-Pro fashion tips. The bond that develops in a group trip creates the perfect environment for doing business. Information is shared, opinions are sought and given, and contacts are made. It makes sense. Of course you would do business with someone you travel with rather than a stranger.

As someone who works in a sales-based role, I have found cycling to be invaluable in building and cementing not only real social friendships, but also mutually beneficial working relationships. Not only do I enjoy the physical activity and social elements of riding, but I find that my job benefits so much from the open network of social cycling.

The great thing about riding a bike over golf is that it takes next to no time to get to a level of proficiency that allows you to participate. You don’t have to do countless practice shots for years to keep from humiliating yourself, you just need a bike, some lycra, and a vague level of fitness.

Whether you’re starting a business, want to expand your network, or just want to make new friends, cycling is a great way to meet people. See you on the way. I’ll bring my business cards.